I am sure this has been answered, but the query is a bit too complex for google.

In short, I am trying to delete many deprecated methods from some code. So I am skimming the file and when I see a method that I want to remove, I am deleting every line until I see a line that starts with a tab then the string "def".

I am thinking VIM should let me create a simple macro to do this, but the trick is escaping me.

You beat me to it, but I think you mean d/\tdef.
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Tim HeniganAug 9 '12 at 12:01

Cool! Real close but not quite. I guess I was a little unclear. I want to delete the entire line I am on so I get rid of the current "def" line
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Skip HuffmanAug 9 '12 at 12:05

So I have the cursor on a line with a "def" and I want to delete that line and every line up to, but not including the next line that starts with "\s\s\s\sdef" (my tabs are always expanded)
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Skip HuffmanAug 9 '12 at 12:07

I would search through the file with /^def, then use n and N to move around, then finally delete with d/^def. If you need to get to the start of the line, use 0
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gunsAug 9 '12 at 12:07

If you have whitespace before the def, make the search /\v^\s*def
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gunsAug 9 '12 at 12:10